<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>A Cavalcade of Accidents by neosaiyanangel</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/23998231">A Cavalcade of Accidents</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/neosaiyanangel/pseuds/neosaiyanangel'>neosaiyanangel</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Marvel Cinematic Universe</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Accidental Marriage, Accidental Soulbond, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Families of Choice, Incestuous Siblings Get Openly Married And Nobody Minds, Jealousy - Jealous Before Getting Together, M/M, Mutual Pining, Post-Canon Fix-It, Sharing a Bed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-05-04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-05-04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-18 02:07:00</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,848</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/23998231</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/neosaiyanangel/pseuds/neosaiyanangel</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Sometimes a dizzying array of accidents can lead to the best thing in your life.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Loki/Thor (Marvel)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>3</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>62</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>Id Pro Quo 2020</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>A Cavalcade of Accidents</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/MemeKonYA/gifts">MemeKonYA</a>.</li>



    </ul></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Thor laughed, skidding to a stop just a few feet away from the monster. He'd just deflected a flurry of blows from the multi-armed creature, a beast obsessed with cocooning prey for storage. It was called a Thnead. For some reason, every time its name was said Quill went into a practical seizure of laughing while quipping about sweaters and knitting.</p>
<p>Ah well. It didn't matter. All that mattered was Thor doing what he was supposed to. It was child's play, really. He knew the role he was supposed to play and he was performing it to a T.</p>
<p>...It wouldn't hurt if he helped out a <em>little</em> bit.</p>
<p>Thor tossed out a bolt of lightning at the creature that stood a good dozen feet over him. It hit the beast with a flare of light. It shrieked; it wasn't the <em>only</em> thing shrieking. Thor was baffled for a moment before he saw Drax fall off its back to the ground. Quill and Rocket drew the Thnead away from Drax.</p>
<p>After a few moments of stumbling to his feet, Drax shouted, "I was <em>not</em> still. You should have realized I was there!"</p>
<p>"Sorry," Thor said genially. "I got a little overenthusiastic with my backup."</p>
<p>"See that it does not happen again." Drax stood there sternly, posed in the same way for at least a solid ten seconds.</p>
<p>"Guys! We kinda need you!" Quill shouted, dodging a string of webbing from the Thnead.</p>
<p>Drax stood for another few seconds before saying, "I hope you learned your lesson."</p>
<p>"Oh yes, I indeed learned my lesson," Thor noted insincerely.</p>
<p>"Good. Now…" Drax turned. "I need you to throw me."</p>
<p>"What?"</p>
<p>"I need you to throw me. Back onto its back. Where I was before you so <em>rudely</em> interrupted my slaying of the beast." Drax was already braced.</p>
<p>"...Okay. Why not?" Thor picked up Drax in a strongman grip before tossing him at the Thnead.</p>
<p>Drax landed just where Thor had aimed: on the Thnead's head. His blades dug in deep into a couple of the many eyes on its head. It shrieked, its hands reaching up to try and remove Drax. Drax paid no mind as he mindlessly began stabbing it in the head over and over.</p>
<p>"Drax! Dude! <em>Stab it harder</em>!"</p>
<p>"I am stabbing as much as I can!"</p>
<p>"Amateurs," Nebula murmured from behind Thor.</p>
<p>"Ah! I see you have finished tending to Groot?" Thor asked. The poor tree creature had been hit pretty solidly by a webshot from the Thnead. Nebula, ever giving, had dropped out of combat to make sure it was okay.</p>
<p>"He's fine. Just annoyed at being stuck to the ground," Nebula said. "We'll get him unstuck after we beat this thing."</p>
<p>"Right."</p>
<p>"...So, what are you waiting for? An invitation?" Thor looked at her. She was staring him down for some reason. Seeming to want to make her case clear, she growled, "Go kill that Thnead."</p>
<p>"Whoa! Hey now!" Thor waved a hand. "I was designated 'the distraction'. Not 'frontline fighter'."</p>
<p>"You're doing a terrific job at distracting," Nebula said with so much sarcasm it made Thor's eyes water. Shaking her head, she pointed and said, "I don't care if Quill is the captain. You need to kill it before it kills them."</p>
<p>Thor noticed now that she was pointing it out that their three comrades were stuck to the trees around them in the Thnead's sticky webbing.</p>
<p>Well. That wasn't good.</p>
<p>Thor shook his head and grumbled, "You'd better take the heat for me not being a team player."</p>
<p>"Yeah, yeah…"</p>
<p>Thor summoned Stormbreaker with a thought. In a flash of lightning the weapon appeared in his hands. It was time to get down to business.</p>
<hr/>
<p>"<em>What</em> did I tell you when we first started?!" Quill was fuming as they walked down the path to the village that had hired them. "Thor? What was your role?"</p>
<p>Thor started, "But Nebula-"</p>
<p>"I DON'T CARE what Nebula said. You were supposed to be the distraction!" Quill raised his hands in exasperation. "You only distracted YOURSELF!"</p>
<p>"He got the job done, didn't he? Cut him some slack!" Rocket butted in.</p>
<p>"Thanks, Rabbit," Thor whispered. Once again, Rocket rolled his eyes but didn't say anything about the nickname. An improvement!</p>
<p>"Whose fault was it that we even ended up on this dump of a planet?" Nebula growled, setting her laser sights on Quill.</p>
<p>"Oh! Ho! So! Now it's all my fault," Quill said. "I see how it is."</p>
<p>"YOU were the one driving!" everyone else said as one.</p>
<p>"Yeah? So? I didn't see any of you trying to keep me awake!"</p>
<p>"Groot!" Groot added.</p>
<p>"Whatever." Quill rolled his eyes as they hit the village border. "What <em>does</em> matter is getting that Unobtanium to help fix the ship."</p>
<p>"Right." Thor nodded. "And now we can get it!"</p>
<p>"Yes! Everything worked out. So why are we all upset?" Drax asked, genuinely confused.</p>
<p>"Because people need to stick to the plan!" Quill yelled, exasperated.</p>
<p>Thor opened his mouth to retort, but closed it as he saw what he knew to be the village leader, a quadrupedal feline-like purple-skinned female, walk up to them. It wouldn't do to argue in front of their client.</p>
<p>"Warriors!" the chief bellowed as she stopped in front of them. "Welcome back! Have you successfully slayed the Thnead?"</p>
<p>Quill snorted, then said, choking, "Oh yeah. We tied up that loose thread real fast."</p>
<p>"Good! As we agreed, the Unobtanium is yours to take." The group of Guardians all smiled. "However…"</p>
<p>The smiles faded.</p>
<p>"However…?" Quill was clearly ready for an argument.</p>
<p>"However, we felt it wasn't enough. So! We decided to throw a party! A true feast fit for the gods!" The chief clapped her hands together. "You shall sit at the head of the table as our honored guests. Come, everything has already been prepared."</p>
<p>"Oh!" Quill immediately relaxed. "Finally! Treated like we're supposed to be."</p>
<p>"As long as we don't have to eat rats, I'll be fine," Nebula said.</p>
<p>"Rats? What's a rats?"</p>
<p>"Just something icky," Quill said, wrapping an arm around the chieftain and walking down the path to the village. "So then, an all-inclusive feast, eh? What does that all entail?"</p>
<p>"Food, dancing, a sacrifice of magic to the gods, music…" The chief was counting off as they went. Thor looked around at the other Guardians. As one, they all shrugged and followed behind their captain.</p>
<p>Whatever was involved in this feast, it looked like they would find out.</p>
<hr/>
<p>To Thor's surprise, the feast was actually a lot of fun!</p>
<p>He wasn't expecting much from these people. They were very low-tech. A lot of things to them seemed to be magic. However, they seemed mesmerized by what Rocket the Rabbit was. The technology intermixed in his body was impressive to them, which, for some reason, made them trust the Guardians.</p>
<p>However! Their feast was extravagant! There were all sorts of delightful fruits and foods of various origins. Thor didn't care what they were as long as they were delicious and not poisonous. Thus far he hadn't been poisoned, so he considered it a win.</p>
<p>"So, here's the food…" Quill waved in front of them to the center of the village where many of the villagers were performing some kind of choreographed dance. "There's the dancing and music…" He turned excitedly to the chief. "Where's the sacrifice of magic to the gods?"</p>
<p>"Why are you so excited, Quill?" Rocket asked before tearing off a chunk of meat off a leg of something.</p>
<p>"I haven't been to a magic show since I was on Earth!" Quill gushed. "I'd LOVE to see one!"</p>
<p>"Very well! It was getting about that time anyway." The chief clapped her hands. "Bring the sacrifice to the gods!"</p>
<p>Thor frowned. 'Sacrifice to the gods' was a different beast than 'sacrifice of magic to the gods'. Perhaps they were misunderstanding?</p>
<p>"We found this magic user on the edges of the forest. Their trickery outwitted us, but in the end we captured them!" The chieftain looked smug. "No magic user has ever managed to escape us for long."</p>
<p>A lump formed in Thor's throat. Oh. So. It <em>was</em> what he was thinking. Oh dear.</p>
<p>"Hey now, I wanted a magic show!" Quill complained. The crowd had moved out of the middle of the clearing, a path forming from the edge of the village none of them had been. "I don't want to see someone get roasted!"</p>
<p>"Roast? Heavens no! We don't eat their diseased meat." The chief tsked. "No, we stone them and toss them in the river."</p>
<p>"Right. Well, I'm not sure I want to stick around to see that," Rocket said, standing up and dusting himself off.</p>
<p>"Groot." Groot also stood as a procession made their way down the cleared path.</p>
<p>"I speak for myself," Drax said, "and I want to see this."</p>
<p>Quill frowned. "Guys-"</p>
<p>"Oh. Well. This is embarrassing."</p>
<p>The words weren't what mattered. What mattered was the <em>voice</em>. The infuriatingly smooth, desperately missed voice of flippant amusement.</p>
<p>Thor's head snapped up to look at the sacrifice. There, tied to a cross with his hands bound several times over, was Loki.</p>
<p>Loli smiled. "Hello, Brother."</p>
<hr/>
<p>Loki looked very, very rough. 'Hobo' wouldn't have been far off. It was like he was going through puberty all over again. Father would be so annoyed if he could see Loki now.</p>
<p>That didn't matter. What mattered was that <em>Loki was alive</em>.</p>
<p>"Brother!" Thor screamed. He leapt up over the table and practically flew straight into Loki. His arms gripped tightly around Loki as he felt tears beginning to bite at his eyes. His chest had burst with warmth when he'd processed who, exactly, was in front of him. The emotion bit at his throat. He cradled Loki's head, kissing his cheeks as he gasped, "You're alive!"</p>
<p>"Yes, Thor, I'm alive," Loki said drolly, seeming to pay no mind as Thor placed his forehead against his own.</p>
<p>"But not for long," the chief tossed in. She was eyeing Thor. "You say he's your brother?"</p>
<p>"Adopted," Rocket threw in unnecessarily.</p>
<p>"Ah. Well." The chieftain coughed. "I will admit, this is awkward." She shook her head. "Nevertheless, he must be stoned for his crimes against the universe. He has no connection to the Truth."</p>
<p>"What is the 'Truth'?" Quill asked, clearly getting worked up. "Is 'Truth' some kind of stone tablet that you scribble on to make it okay to stone people?!"</p>
<p>"Truth is the law of the universe." The chief's words were stern. "This trickster has no connection to the universe beyond twisting it to their perversions. Nothing they care about to keep them civil. Thus they must be destroyed."</p>
<p>"Us being brothers isn't enough?" Thor asked. He was resisting blasting all these villagers and simply running off with his brother. There wasn't an iota of care for being stuck on the planet forever. If he was with Loki, that was all that mattered.</p>
<p>"Oh yes. I love my brother very, very much," Loki said strongly.</p>
<p>"You expect us to believe that?" The chief stared.</p>
<p>"You can't kill him! Because…" Thor's mind raced for something illogical to combat the illogic in front of him. "...Because he's my wife?"</p>
<p>A gasp echoed throughout the area. The chieftain paused, clearly uncertain. "This trickster...is your wife?"</p>
<p>"Yes!" Thor said boastfully, "I was far too intimidating at our wedding. You see, we were adoptive brothers with the intent to be married. But my bride-" he thumbed at Loki "-ran off before everything was official."</p>
<p>Loki whispered, "That's the best you could do?!"</p>
<p>Thor hurriedly whispered back, "I'm not like you! I can't lie on command!"</p>
<p>The entire village seemed to be trying to process the very curious facts presented to them.</p>
<p>"So...he is connected to the Truth...through you?" the chief tried to understand.</p>
<p>"Yes! Exactly!" Thor beamed. "I'm glad you understand now."</p>
<p>"In that case…" The chief made a strange purring-meow gasp. The rest of the village echoed before bursting into a flurry of activity. Loki was suddenly unbound and in Thor's arms. An extra table was set up in the middle of the clearing, interesting fruits set out in a circle. The chief made her way to the center with them. "Here. Eat these fruits and be well."</p>
<p>Loki and Thor looked at each other. Loki shrugged, convincing Thor to walk over while carrying his brother. He had no problem holding Loki as he was; Thor was afraid that if he let go, Loki would vanish in a puff of smoke.</p>
<p>They stood there, looking at the various fruits in front of them. The chieftain said warmly, "Eat, and restore your bond to the Truth and to each other."</p>
<p>Loki waved his hand as best he could, clearly suffering from some dead arm. "After you, my dearest brother."</p>
<p>Thor laughed, so glad to hear the sarcasm. He easily picked up a small fruit from the outer portion and shoved it into his mouth. Deciding for Loki, he picked up the same fruit and put it in Loki's mouth. Swallowing a bite, he murmured, "Seeing as you don't seem to be able to use your hands…"</p>
<p>Loki rolled his eyes but dutifully took a bite of the fruit.</p>
<p>Suddenly EVERYONE in the village was cheering! It was like they'd done something even better than slaying the Thnead. All the Guardians were confused save for Drax, who was too busy watching them eat fruit to pay attention to the crowd around them.</p>
<p>"Why are we not offered that fruit?" Drax complained as everyone quieted down. "That fruit looks like the best fruit."</p>
<p>"This fruit is special," the chieftain explained. "If they had chosen poorly, we would have stoned them both."</p>
<p>"Oh. So, because they chose right…?" Quill asked leadingly.</p>
<p>"They are married as they so wished to be!" the chief said happily. "The trickster is now connected to the Truth!"</p>
<p>Loki and Thor both froze. Then, slowly, they looked at each other.</p>
<p>Finally, after a long moment, Loki grumbled, "I blame <em>you</em> for this."</p>
<hr/>
<p>"So. We're married." Loki ran his hands through his rough hair for probably the hundredth time. They had stolen away from the celebration for a moment. The chieftain had attributed it to 'wedding jitters'. Thor decided not to argue if it got him a moment alone with his brother.</p>
<p>"So what? I don't care about that!" Thor once again hugged his brother. "What matters is that <em>you're alive</em>!"</p>
<p>"Yes, yes. You can get over that anytime now," Loki griped.</p>
<p>"<em>How</em>? How did you survive Thanos choking you to death?" Thor asked as he gaped at him.</p>
<p>Suddenly Loki looked cocky. "I'm not sure you could appreciate it."</p>
<p>"I appreciate <em>everything</em> about you." Thor wasn't sure he could live away from Loki anymore. Now, Loki could stay with him forever.</p>
<p>"Well, I will tell you that it would be something even Mother would have had trouble pulling off," Loki boastfully claimed. "You see, I-"</p>
<p>"Uh, guys?" They both looked over to see Quill approaching them with hunched shoulders. "Yeah, I know you two were just reunited and all. But? We're kinda in the middle of a crisis. You apparently need to prove to these guys that you're married for realsies."</p>
<p>Thor stared. "By what?"</p>
<p>"Being couple-y! I don't know!" Quill ducked in and harshly whispered, "All I know is that you're <em>wrecking</em> our chances to get the Unobtanium!"</p>
<p>"Don't worry." Thor set a calming hand on Quill's shoulder. "We've done this before."</p>
<p>"You two have been married before?" Quill asked, confused.</p>
<p>"Technically yes," Loki said, shooting Thor a look that could kill. "It doesn't count, though!"</p>
<p>"Mother really should have chastised that handmaiden more for that," Thor said, letting himself fall into the memory. "Father wasn't as upset as he should have been considering we're brothers."</p>
<p>"Adopted," Quill said almost automatically.</p>
<p>"We know that <em>now</em>," Thor replied irritably. He thought for a moment. "That explains many things now that I think about it."</p>
<p>"<em>Anyway</em>…" Loki coughed. "So, Thor and I must pretend to be cheerful, sickeningly sweet newlyweds."</p>
<p>"I don't know about 'sickeningly sweet'. Maybe 'less antagonistic'?"</p>
<p>"Oh my. How will I cope?" Loki pretended to swoon. "Hold me, my dearest."</p>
<p>Quill rolled his eyes. "Whatever. All that matters is that YOU two-" he specifically pointed between them "-don't screw this up for the rest of us!"</p>
<p>Before either of them could retort, Quill went stomping back to the village center.</p>
<p>The two of them stood there, trying to process everything.</p>
<p>There was one important thing that Thor NEEDED from Loki.</p>
<p>"Loki."</p>
<p>The serious tone seemed to catch Loki off-guard. "Yes, Thor?"</p>
<p>Thor grabbed Loki and placed his forehead against his own. "Please, don't leave my side ever again. Stay with me."</p>
<p>Loki gave Thor one of his patented sarcastic smiles. "I'll stay with you as long as fate allows."</p>
<p>"Good." Thor let him go and held out an arm. "Ready to dazzle our audience?"</p>
<p>Loki entwined his arm into Thor's. "Oh yes. This should be fun."</p>
<hr/>
<p>"Welcome back!" The chieftain looked pleased with herself. "It's always a good day when a long-lost couple can be reunited."</p>
<p>"Long-lost indeed," Thor said, wrapping Loki up in a hug. Loki didn't manage as easy as a smile as he normally would manage. In fact, he looked rather uncomfortable even with his agreement. Thor decided to push the envelope and kissed Loki on the cheek.</p>
<p>The rightness of it made Thor reel. He'd done it before out of instinctive emotion. Now? It was entirely on purpose. Not that it made the kisses before any less right. In fact, <em>all</em> of it felt right.</p>
<p>As he pondered the confusing thoughts, Loki asked, "So, what happens now?"</p>
<p>"Hm?" The chief looked between them, then seemed to understand what he said. "Oh! Yes. Well. I gave your chieftain the Unobtanium. They're starting repairs on your ship right now. He'd said they would 'pull and all-nighter' to try and leave tomorrow."</p>
<p>"Whoa now. An all-nighter?" Thor was concerned, considering they were there BECAUSE Quill pulled an all-nighter. "I think I need to go talk with them."</p>
<p>"Go right ahead! We took the liberty of bringing the ship here."</p>
<p>"You carried that hunk of junk <em>all the way here</em>?" Thor exclaimed.</p>
<p>"It wasn't <em>that</em> bad. The real struggle was keeping all the pieces together!" the chieftain said with a laugh.</p>
<p>"Right…" Thor said, "I guess that's where we'll go next."</p>
<p>"Yes! Let's go, away from these...villagers." Loki asked, "Which direction?"</p>
<p>"That way." Again, it was a direction that the Guardians hadn't gone before.</p>
<p>"Thanks." Thor gave her a brilliant smile before setting his sights on the wreck, Loki tagging closely behind.</p>
<p>"I feel very unsafe," Loki said before Thor could say anything.</p>
<p>"I wonder why?" Thor couldn't help but to snark.</p>
<p>Loki shot him a death glare. Thor just continued to smile. After a few seconds Loki seemed to give up. He walked silently behind Thor.</p>
<p>"I missed you." The strange, slightly awestruck tone caught Thor off-guard. Thor stopped and turned towards his brother. Loki was standing there, a peculiar expression on his face. He was looking at Thor the way he used to back before the mess with the ice giants. Back when they were still close. He continued, "You always seem to know just what I need to hear to not become...sullen. An insufferably bright spot on a cloudy day."</p>
<p>Thor couldn't help the warm smile. "Good. You've had enough cloudy days. A constant bright spot might improve that mood of yours!"</p>
<p>"Don't let that get to your head," Loki warned as the ship came into view. "You're still insufferable." More quietly, he murmured, "Though I suppose I wouldn't have it many other ways."</p>
<p>Thor considered retorting but was interrupted by a shout.</p>
<p>"Oy! You!" Rocket the Rabbit was waving Thor over. "Get over here!"</p>
<p>Thor and Loki made their way over to him.</p>
<p>"Mr. Lightning Fingers! I need you to weld this," Rocket said, pointing between the Unobtanium and his repair gun.</p>
<p>"Why? Can't you just, I don't know, wave your gun and do it?" Loki asked, annoyed.</p>
<p>"Not everything can be strongarmed, you incestuous chump," the rabbit countered. "Sometimes it takes some finesse."</p>
<p>Thor pulled Loki away as he looked to be ready to choke Rocket out. "Calm down, Loki," Thor murmured. "He's my friend."</p>
<p>"We <em>both</em> know the types you consider friends," Loki grumbled back.</p>
<p>"Then you shouldn't be so bothered!" Thor patted Loki on the back. "It shouldn't take long."</p>
<p>"It'd better not," Loki said as he walked over to a random piece of the ship and sat down on it. "I'll be waiting right here for it to all be over."</p>
<p>"Good!" Thor went to work.</p>
<hr/>
<p>"-and here!"</p>
<p>"Rabbit, when will we finish?" Thor complained.</p>
<p>"We're pulling an all-nighter," Rocket replied.</p>
<p>"I never agreed to that!"</p>
<p>"You implicitly agreed when you came over to talk," the rabbit countered.</p>
<p>Thor sighed. Maybe Loki had a point about his type of friends.</p>
<p>He turned and began saying to Loki, "It looks like I should've listened to y-" Thor stopped as soon as he realized that Loki wasn't where he'd last seen him.</p>
<p>Great. Where did he go now? He'd promised not to run off again.</p>
<p>"I need to find my brother," Thor said, moving away from Rocket.</p>
<p>"You mean your wife? Yeah, sure. Go ahead and make deformed babies together," the rabbit snickered.</p>
<p>Thor laughed before walking away. Sometimes the best way to deflect was to simply walk away.</p>
<p>His attention was drawn by the light of a fire and the sound of voices. Thor made his way over there to find Nebula and Loki apparently trading stories of some sort. She was upsettingly close to Loki and had a very rare smile on her face. Even more upsetting, Loki was smiling too.</p>
<p>Thor stomped over and immediately sat in the infuriatingly small space between them. "So! Loki! What have you been up to with Nebula?"</p>
<p>"Oh, nothing much." He had a half-grin on his face. "We're simply discussing our golden child sibling."</p>
<p>"The sibling that got the love and attention that we craved," Nebula said.</p>
<p>"The sibling that everyone adored."</p>
<p>"The sibling-"</p>
<p>"Hey now! You were Mother's favorite," Thor butted in.</p>
<p>"You had a <em>fan club</em>, Thor," Loki countered flatly.</p>
<p>"And your father disowned him at his lowest point," Nebula added mercilessly.</p>
<p>Thor frowned. "Okay, so, maybe Loki isn't as adored as me. He still has one very important fan."</p>
<p>"Oh?" Loki looked rather bemused. "Who would this 'important fan' be?"</p>
<p>"Me," Thor replied. He belatedly noted that he'd put a hand on Loki's own.</p>
<p>Loki laughed. "Really, brother? Must you always prove how pure and noble you are?"</p>
<p>"I'm being honest! You are very impressive," Thor said with as much sincerity as he could muster.</p>
<p>"This discussion got very strange very fast." Nebula got up. "I think I'm going to bed."</p>
<p>"Very well then! I hope your rest is very, erm, restful," Thor stumbled verbally.</p>
<p>"As long as I don't dream about you two holding hands I think I'll be fine," she countered.</p>
<p>Loki pulled his hand free of Thor's like it was on fire.</p>
<p>Nebula chuckled before heading over to where Thor could see some rough shelters put together. Why they weren't staying in town again he wasn't sure. It was likely the whole 'stoning' thing. That tended to put a damper on things.</p>
<p>"I actually agree with Nebula." At Thor's questioning glance, Loki elaborated, "I think it's about time to go to bed."</p>
<p>Now that it had been brought up, Thor <em>was</em> feeling rather tired. All the excitement and joy of the day had worn him down. Catching some sleep was probably a good idea.</p>
<p>"Then let's go," Thor said, standing up.</p>
<p>The two of them ventured over to the shelters. Quill looked to be just finishing up the last shelter.</p>
<p>"Well! Look who decided to show up at the very end of doing stuff!" Quill grumbled.</p>
<p>"I was helping the rabbit put the ship back together," Thor defended. "And you <em>know</em> I can't put shelters together."</p>
<p>"Uh, no? We've never had to do this before," their captain said.</p>
<p>"Oh, the stories I could tell…" Loki said, smiling. "Shall I regale him with your various amusing failures?"</p>
<p>"No!" Thor said too quickly. More calmly, clearing his throat, he asked, "Which are ours?"</p>
<p>"Y'see, that's the thing," Quill said in that tone that meant he was about to dunk on someone. "You weren't here to give your input on how sleeping arrangements were supposed to be. So, because you two are a married couple, I just assumed that you'd be sleeping together."</p>
<p>Loki froze. Then he laughed. "You must be joking."</p>
<p>"Nope!" Quill waved at a slightly larger tent. "There's yours." His grin was positively evil as he said, "Sleep tight!"</p>
<p>Before either Thor or Loki could get another word in, he vanished inside the freshly-built shelter.</p>
<p>"Great." Loki shook his head. "The indignities just keep coming."</p>
<p>"Come come now, Loki. It won't be that bad!" Thor wrapped Loki up in a one-armed hug. "It could be a single to share!"</p>
<p>"Way to look on the bright side," Loki said with an eye roll. He sighed. "Whatever. I'm too tired to argue or try and build another one."</p>
<p>Thor was secretly glad that they were stuck sharing a tent. It meant that Loki would be close. He'd never felt such a suffocating need to make sure that Loki stayed with him. Loki dying to Thanos had ripped a hole in Thor's heart that never healed. Having that missing piece back felt like the universe was a little bit better.</p>
<p>The two of them climbed under the flap to the shelter that the captain had indicated. Inside, Quill had put Thor's bed things, including the bedroll.</p>
<p>"You can have the middle," Thor said as he fell to the ground, shoving the bedroll to the side.</p>
<p>"So you can complain about a sore back in the morning? No." Loki propped himself up and shoved the bedroll into Thor's side. "<em>You</em> take the bedroll."</p>
<p>Thor snorted. "Why are you being stubborn about this?"</p>
<p>"I've been roughing it out here for years," Loki said. "Laying on the ground is another simple indignity. While <em>you</em>-" he reached over and poked Thor in the chest "-are a whiner that can't handle not having something soft to lay on."</p>
<p>"The 'roughing it' is the reason you should have the bedroll!" Thor exclaimed.</p>
<p>"Let's just share the blasted thing and be done with it!" Loki seemed to blurt out.</p>
<p>The two of them stared at each other. Then, slowly, they worked in tandem to arrange the bedroll in the middle of the shelter. Loki was the first one that dared to lay down, Thor following shortly afterwards. The two of them laid there stiffly, watching each other.</p>
<p>"Well...goodnight." Loki flipped around to lay on his other side. Thor did the same. The warmth against his back was reassuring and swiftly lulled Thor to sleep.</p>
<hr/>
<p>Thor woke up slowly at first. The dream he'd had was amazing. Loki was fine and had come back to him. They were together like they should have been. It was disappointing to wake up from it. The sound of someone sleeping soundly next to him kept him calm as he opened his eyes.</p>
<p>He blinked hard a few times. In front of him, mere inches from his face, Loki was facing him. The snoring had been <em>him</em>.</p>
<p>It hadn't been a dream. Loki was here, with him, now.</p>
<p>Thor barely resisted crying as he watched his brother sleep. It had been a hope of his to bring Loki back with the Infinity Stones while they'd had them. Thanos' return and the lack of people that could use the gauntlet scuttled those plans. To find out it wasn't even necessary…!</p>
<p>The pang in his heart was unlike anything he'd felt before. It was a soul-deep love that broke through all barriers.</p>
<p>Thor's eyes shot all the way open.</p>
<p>Love. Oh no. Oh <em>no</em>. There...there must have been something in that fruit that the chieftain gave them. He couldn't be in love with <em>Loki</em>. Clearly, it was fraternal love. Yes! That's what it was. Fraternal.</p>
<p>...So why did he want to kiss Loki again?</p>
<p>He could do it now. Prove to himself it was a one-off. Loki would never know.</p>
<p>Thor went for it. He pushed his head the extra few inches to meet Loki's limp lips with his own. A strange spark went through his mind at it and he got an image of something...an old man in a loincloth summoning a yellow portal with his hands?</p>
<p>Loki's eyes snapped open. Thor was too shocked to move, his lips staying pressed against Loki's. Eventually Loki pulled back.</p>
<p>They stared in silence for a few minutes. Neither of them dared to do anything. Then, finally, Loki said something.</p>
<p>"Thor?"</p>
<p>Thor swallowed. "Yes, Loki?"</p>
<p>"I think there was something in that fruit."</p>
<p>"...You too?"</p>
<p>Loki nodded. "Me too."</p>
<p>Thor sighed. "Dare we go ask how to reverse it?"</p>
<p>"Do you <em>want</em> to be stoned?" Loki gawked.</p>
<p>"We can take them," Thor boasted.</p>
<p>"They took me down with just three of them. There are WELL over three hundred of them in that village!"</p>
<p>"Ah." Thor looked away, trying to think. How could they fix this situation?</p>
<p>"...Would it really be that bad?" Thor glanced at Loki. He had an unusually serious expression on his face. He repeated, "Would it really be that bad? Not fixing this?"</p>
<p>"You're just saying that because of the fruit," Thor said even though he felt the same.</p>
<p>"Maybe. Or it could just be me giving in after a few eons of wanting."</p>
<p>"Maybe."</p>
<p>They sat there in silence again.</p>
<p>Thor, again, went for it. "So did you want to give it a shot? Being together like that?"</p>
<p>Loki seemed to consider it for a moment. "As long as you don't expect me to carry any child, we should be fine."</p>
<p>"You? Carry a child? I know you've transformed into a woman before-"</p>
<p>"Which was the worst way to win a bet <em>ever</em>," Loki butted in.</p>
<p>"-but I didn't think you actually had the anatomy for it."</p>
<p>"I don't. That's why you shouldn't expect me to carry any child," Loki explained.</p>
<p>"Ah." Thor stretched. "In that case, we should ask Brunnhilde to carry any child we have."</p>
<p>"The Valkyrie?" Thor nodded to Loki's question. "Hm. Well, it could be worse. Mother could still be alive and insisting she carry her grandchild."</p>
<p>Thor's brain felt like it broke. "Why must you torment me like that?"</p>
<p>"If I was thinking it, you had to think it too," Loki murmured, content.</p>
<p>"You're such a bastard," Thor grumbled.</p>
<p>"Yes you love me for it," Loki noted smugly.</p>
<p>"...Yes. Yes, I do."</p>
<p>The two of them climbed out of the tent one after the other. The other Guardians seemed to be eating a mix of rations and hunted meat. Drax had a supply of fruits around him. Surprisingly, none of the other Guardians, including Rocket, had any fruit.</p>
<p>"Greetings, my fellow Guardians!" Thor helped Loki up. "How does this morning see you?"</p>
<p>"Fine enough." Drax took a bite of one of the fruits. He swallowed and said, "The chieftain told me that the fruit causes souls to bind. Are you two involved now? As husband and wife?"</p>
<p>Loki almost pratfalled as Thor simply sighed. Leave it to Drax to be direct. Thor had been hoping to slowly introduce the idea, but since he said it so blatantly…</p>
<p>"Yes, I suppose we are," Thor admitted reluctantly.</p>
<p>"I toldja!" Rocket burst out. He held out a hand and wiggled it. "Pay up!"</p>
<p>"Why must you always disappoint me?" Drax asked Thor as he dug in his pocket. "I had assumed you would be steeped in shame for at least another few days before you would ever confess something so vulgar."</p>
<p>"Hey, they're royalty." Quill shrugged. "They're all about that incest."</p>
<p>"I'm adopted," Loki threw in.</p>
<p>"Like that's any better!" Rocket said.</p>
<p>"Why aren't you guys eating any of the fruit?" Thor asked everyone else, desperately trying to change the topic.</p>
<p>"Oh! Yeah. Uhm, apparently this stuff is all voodoo weird stuff," Quill said. "It's supposed to do all sorts of stuff to you."</p>
<p>"Silly superstition," Drax grumbled before daringly taking a bite of yet another fruit. "I gathered all I could find. They would not help me find the fruits you two had."</p>
<p>"Because we don't want you guys in a weirdo threesome!" the rabbit said.</p>
<p>Nebula added her two cents. "The thought makes me sick."</p>
<p>"Groot."</p>
<p>"Don't you start with me," Thor said, pointing a finger at Groot.</p>
<p>"You and your strange minors." Loki shook his head. "Becoming a polyglot just because you didn't want to learn to cook."</p>
<p>"If I were to be a king, that would require being able to communicate with many peoples," Thor defended. More quietly, he complained, "Also, I kept burning the omelettes. I couldn't pass the first test."</p>
<p>"Yes, I know. You set my dorm on fire practicing, remember?" Loki noted, deapan.</p>
<p>"How could I forget? You remind me every time I try to cook."</p>
<p>"How about you two stop the back-and-forth and eat already?" Rocket asked. "If we can get Thor to actually concentrate, we could probably be outta here before the solar winds pick up again."</p>
<p>"Hear that? You have to actually work!" Quill said with a laugh.</p>
<p>"What shall I do in your little ragtag group?" Loki asked.</p>
<p>"Cheerlead," Rocket said with a grin.</p>
<p>"We do lack a mascot," Drax agreed.</p>
<p>Heatedly, Loki growled, "How about I stick my boot up your-"</p>
<p>"Okay then!" Thor grabbed Loki and Rocket. "Let's get to work!"</p>
<p>"Hey! What have I told you about picking me up like this?" Rocket complained, wriggling around in Thor's grasp.</p>
<p>"Not to?"</p>
<p>"Yeah!"</p>
<p>"Too bad, Rabbit," Loki said.</p>
<p>"Just 'cause I let Thor get away with that doesn't mean I'll let you do the same," Rocket grumbled.</p>
<p>"Aren't we companions now?" Loki said in his faux innocent tone.</p>
<p>"Bite me!" Rocket finally wrestled himself free. He hopped down, then shrugged. "Eh, whatever. Let's just get this over with."</p>
<p>"Right!" Thor began skipping happily to the ship, Loki beside him and Rocket trailing behind.</p>
<p>"How long do you think it'll last?" Nebula asked loudly.</p>
<p>"I give it a week," Quill said.</p>
<p>"I say two," Drax countered.</p>
<p>"Would you like to bet on that?" Nebula asked.</p>
<p>Their voices trailed away. It didn't matter what they bet on them. The connection he and Loki had was strong. They had been through so much together and, disaster after disaster, kept managing to find each other.</p>
<p>That reminded Thor of something.</p>
<p>"Loki, you never told me how you managed to escape Thanos," Thor reminded him.</p>
<p>"Oh yes. We were rudely interrupted, weren't we?" Loki cleared his throat as he went into his storyteller mode. "You see, it was a split-second decision…"</p>
  </div></div>
</body>
</html>